Bomb targets mosque in Kabul, ‘a number of civilians’ dead

A bomb exploded in the entrance of a mosque in the Afghan capital on Sunday leaving a “number of civilians dead,” a Taliban spokesman said.

The bomb targeted the sprawling Eidgah Mosque in Kabul, where a memorial service was being held for the mother of Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, who later tweeted the attack had claimed civilian lives.

Emergency NGO, an Italian-funded hospital in Kabul, tweeted it had received four people wounded in the blast.

The area around the mosque was cordoned off by the Taliban who maintained a heavy security presence.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. However, since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in mid-August, attacks by Daesh militants against them have increased. The rise has raised the possibility of a wider conflict between the two extremist groups.

Daesh maintains a strong presence in the eastern province of Nangarhar and considers the Taliban an enemy. It has claimed several attacks against them, including several killings in the provincial capital of Jalalabad.

Attacks in Kabul have so far been rare, but in recent weeks Daesh has shown signs it is expanding its footprint beyond the east and closer toward the capital. On Friday, Taliban fighters raided a Daesh hideout just north of Kabul in Parwan province. The raid came after an Daesh roadside bomb wounded four Taliban fighters in the area.